SAN JUAN (Puerto Rico) - Jose Alvarado was named TISSOT MVP of the FIBA Qualifying Tournament in San Juan after leading Puerto Rico to the title and securing the last ticket to Paris 2024.
The New Orleans Pelicans' guard scored 10 of his 23 points in the third quarter as the islanders made their definitive run, opening up a double-digit lead that they would never relinquish.
The 26-year-old set the tone early, going for steals, diving for loose balls and running the break with blazing speed and unstoppable force to set Puerto Rico on the path to victory.
Alvarado had a dream week, dropping 29 points in the key victory over Italy in the Group Phase and then leading the charge on Sunday against Lithuania, a team that could never figure him out on either side of the floor.
"I think this group is special, I've said it from the beginning," he said. "The one thing about this group is that we aren't scared of anybody. We know we can beat anybody on any given night. Yes, we know that they're probably more talented, bigger, stronger, but we're not worried about any of that."
The speedster averaged 16.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.3 steals, shooting a red-hot 50 percent from the field and from three-point range, going 12-for-24 across his four games.
He formed a great duo with fellow guard Tremont Waters, who dropped 18 points in the Final and averaged 15.3 points and 5.5 assists.
"We're learning each other," Alvarado added. "This is a great group right here. Coach always asks us to put our egos to the side and that's what we did. One thing led to another. As a basketball player I just want to play, regardless if it's off the bench. I just want to make the right plays for my teammates. It was a tough 4 games. No one knows what we went through behind closed doors. Guys got personal and we're human. But we put our egos to the side and we took care of 4 games."
FIBA